A French author and television personality has been criticised for saying he is not capable of loving a woman older the 50, despite being 50-years-old himself.

In an interview with Marie Claire, Yann Moix said women in their 50s were “too old” for his affection and “invisible” to him.

“I prefer younger women’s bodies, that’s all. End of. The body of a 25-year-old woman is extraordinary. The body of a woman of 50 is not extraordinary at all,” he said.

Moix’s comments have been widely derided online with the hashtag #YannMoix, with a number of commentators mocking him and saying women over 50 must be “breathing a sigh of relief”. Elsewhere, a number of older women have posted pictures of their bodies in protest and to demonstrate their confidence in their own bodies.

Women over 50 who have just learned they will never feel the loving caress of Yann Moix are breathing a collective sigh of relief at the bullet they've dodged.